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I am sure there are more sophisticated jigs/methods out there as I am still a newbie at all this lutherie malarky but I thought I'd show the jig I use for fretboards. Its not my original idea but it may help someone out there. I used to do the fretboard shaping by hand using the Stewmac sanding beam. As I am using Mulga wood (very hard Australian wood) it took about 2-3hrs of solid hand sanding to get the radius. I can now do the bulk of the work with the jig and then just do finishing sanding with the beam. It now takes about 30 minutes all up. It is all made from scraps around the workshop except for the PVC pipe ($5 from the local hardware).

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Martin Taylor
http://martintaylorguitars.com.au

Very nice, Martin! Do you use a straight bit? I find that I get a much cleaner cut using a mortising bit for this kind of route.

Alex

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"Indecision is the key to flexibility" .... Bumper sticker

Hi Alex,

well spotted, I have been using a straight bit but I want to experiment with a few different bits to see which works best. I'll try a mortising bit based on your recommendation.

Thanks

Martin

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Martin Taylor
http://martintaylorguitars.com.au

Martin,
How are you affixing the fretboard to the jig? Double-sided tape?
Dan

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Hi Dan,

Yes, I use the thin type of Double sided tape and make sure the base is cleared of all dust and press down really hard before doing anything. I had one disaster when rushing to rout when I hadn't stuck it down well enough. Lesson learned. I also was using a wide bit (19mm) but am now using a 10mm bit. I think I have a lot more control with the smaller bit.

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Martin Taylor
http://martintaylorguitars.com.au

I have found that a bowl and dish cutting bits in the link I posted works well for things like this. The rounder corners of the bit cut with less chance of tear out on radiused surfaces like this. I also use a bit like this when I need to thin down a board that to wide for my combination jointer/planer for electric bodies....Mike

http://www.mlcswoodworking.com/shopsite ... _sign.html

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Guitars, guitars and more guitars.

Martin nice jig....Mike

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Guitars, guitars and more guitars.

Hi is the radius on the jig rails larger that than the finished radius of your fretboard and if so how do work out the radius of the rails to arrive at say a 12ins radius on the fretboard?

Cheers, Bob

Hi Bob,

The crucial thing isn't the positioning of the rails, it is the curve on the bottom of the box that holds the router. The curve on the box is a 12" radius and the spacing of the rails allows the box to rotate over that radius with enough room for the fretboard under the jig. If the rails were further apart or closer together what would change is the relationship of how far away the fretboard would be from the router bit.

If I wanted to make a fretboard with a 10" radius I would just need to make a new box with that radius on the bottom. I could then use the same jig but would have to adjust the height of the platform under the fretboard so that it reaches the router bit.

Below are 2 pics that should show what I mean.

This is the 12" radius jig. (the one in the pics above)


This is a 10" modification. The only thing that has changed is the radius box that the router is attached to and one of the risers


Hope that helps.

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Martin Taylor
http://martintaylorguitars.com.au